Here's what's new at CareLeader.org

How desires affect people--and why it matters in counseling

First Peter 2:11 tells us that the passions of our flesh wage war against our souls. What are the implications of this verse for counseling? Dr. Jeremy Lelek explains in this post. His concern? That we're not giving those we care for everything they need to win the war they face. See if you agree.

Caring for women who've had abortions

As pastors we're quick to cite facts that reveal the shocking number of women who've had abortions. But have you ever stopped to think that those same stats suggest that a number of women in your church have had an abortion?

Counselor Julie Ganschow says that as many as 1 in 6 women in your church have terminated a pregnancy. And in many cases these women deal with shame, guilt, and depression--years after their decision.

In this article, Julie helps us understand some of the emotional and spiritual challenges women who've had abortions commonly face. And she provides helpful insights on how to minister to them. This kind of information can help us begin to think about ways to care for those who are suffering silently from the guilt and shame of past abortions.

In other news

I have a few questions about your church (Plus, Greek food, Duke, and forecasting)

Take the survey now! And if you’re interested in why I want to know about your congregation, here’s the backstory ...

Two weeks ago I met Dennis, a member of my church, for lunch at Aladdin's--a nice Greek spot near Durham, NC. Dennis works in Duke University's surgery department. He has a PhD in applied mathematics and does a lot of modeling and forecasting that's used in the design of medical devices. He serves our church by accurately forecasting our giving and attendance (and monitoring our coffee bar on Sunday mornings).

I told Dennis about our In This Together project, my hopes for its success, and our plan to invite churches to partner with us to produce it. I admitted to him that while preselling 900 kits would help us reduce our financial risk, it didn't tell us whether the curriculum would necessarily be viable long-term. He said he could help us figure that out.

So I paid for lunch.

Anyway, Dennis recommended we do another survey. He said we need to know what you currently think about the quality of friendships and community in your church and how you'd like to see those areas improve. He said knowing that would indicate what content/skills we should emphasize in In This Together. That info, coupled with knowledge of your satisfaction of previous programs and some of our sales data, would help him forecast the curriculum's potential.

So if you've got a few minutes, please take this 12-question survey. Think of it as a way to custom design a curriculum for your church.

Thanks for your help!